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Delta Dental Of Tennessee And The Nashville Predators Team Up To Promote Mouth Guard Safety, Produce PSA

Delta Dental has donated more than 75,000 mouth guards to children across the state

Monday, 08.12.2013 / 10:47 AM
Nashville Predators

Nashville, Tenn. – Because more mouth injuries mean fewer smiles, Delta Dental of Tennessee and the Nashville Predators have produced the public service announcement, “Mouth Guard Safety,” promoting the use of mouth guards among athletes. The three-minute video, hosted by Nashville Predators’ radio analyst Stu Grimson, speaks to the importance of wearing mouth guards during contact sports and explains the three different types of mouth guards.

“The importance of wearing an athletic mouth guard goes beyond the preservation of your smile,” Nashville Predators Alumni and broadcaster Stu Grimson said. “Hockey is a physical and fast-moving game where there is always a risk of injury to the head and mouth. A good-quality properly-fitted mouth guard – which can prevent brain injuries, loss of consciousness, neck injuries, and even jaw fractures – is smart protection for any player.”

Delta Dental of Tennessee is determined to protect the smiles of young Tennessee athletes, which is why they have donated more than 75,000 mouth guards to children across the state. These donations are a result of the “Protect Your Fangs” campaign, Delta Dental’s partnership with the Nashville Predators, which exists to encourage young athletes to use mouth guards during sports practices and games for safety and oral health.

According to the American Dental Association, roughly 10-20 percent of all sports-related injuries are maxillofacial injuries. Additionally, the National Youth Sports Foundation for Safety says an athlete is 60 times more likely to experience damage to the teeth when not wearing a protective mouth guard.

“With these figures so high and these injuries so easily prevented, we recommend all athletes take measures to prevent such injuries by wearing a mouth guard,” said Phil Wenk, D.D.S., president and CEO of Delta Dental of Tennessee. “Athletes aren’t fully suited up unless they have their mouth guard in place.”

In the joint PSA, Predator’s Defenseman Ryan Ellis echoes the sentiments of Grimson and Wenk: “In hockey, you take a lot of hard hits and you don’t know which time is going to be the wrong one. Anything that could cut down on your chances…I obviously wouldn’t take a risk like that; I definitely wear one.”

NHL and the NHL Shield are registered trademarks and NHL Mobile name and logo, NHL GameCenter and Unlimited NHL are trademarks of the National Hockey League. NHL and NHL team marks are the property of the NHL and its teams.